How To Prevent Rabbits from Eating Car Wires

In the event that your car is attacked by a rabbit, be prepared for the worst. Don’t be fooled by their good looks. Rabbits can do just as much damage as their rodent cousins, and in short order. If you live in an area that is populated with these furry creatures, it certainly makes sense to put up some defenses and make sure you are protected.

Note: Initially, I always recommend that you consistently keep an eye on things under your hood and implement The 5 Minute Check That Can Save Your Car (and your sanity!)

To best protect your car from new (or further) damage, we should first understand the psychology of the type of rodent we are dealing with. Let’s get right to it!

Here is the breakdown of your enemy profile, The Rabbit:

• Rabbits are emotional. They are capable of feeling a wide range of emotions including love, fear, grief, insecurity, anger and jealousy. We are dealing with a drama case here.
• Rabbits like strong women. Within each warren (aka rabbit hole), there is a dominant female whom enjoys certain privileges by her subordinates, such as grooming.
• Rabbits are into chinning. They have scent glands in their chin which they will rub on things to show ownership.
• Rabbits are quick in bed. If it makes you feel any better, rabbit intercourse only lasts about 1 minute.
• Rabbits prefer their poo to be prepared soft. Rabbits have two different types of poop: one that is soft and one that is hard. The soft poops (aka night feces; which also strikingly resemble Raisinets!) are eaten immediately by the Rabbit, while the hard poops are left in the dust. Some substances that the rabbits eat need to first be broken down by rabbits system on an initial pass through before it can be fully digested.
• Rabbits are super efficient at breast feeding. They have the most nutritious milk of almost all mammals and therefore only need to nurse their young for about 5 minutes per day.
• Rabbits have a very hands off (or paws off) parenting style. Essentially, the helpless blind little bunnies are born out in the open and are left alone for the vast majority of every day. The mother will come back to feed but that’s about it.
• Rabbits constantly live in fear. Since rabbits are prey, they have a wide field of vision and are always on the look out for predators. Anytime spent above ground is done so with extreme caution.
• One rabbit can produce up to 20 baby rabbits per year. Leave the rabbits alone and that can add up to a lot of rabbits per year!
• Rabbit teeth continually grow. So this means that they constantly need to be chewing on things.
• Rabbits need to eat constantly. If they are not gobbling down some night feces you can usually find them eating grass, hay, twigs, bark, rubber and car wires. Up to 80% of a rabbits diet can consist of grass/hay.

Alright, now that we understand our enemy a bit, let’s consider why they may be getting into your car.

Top Reasons Why Rabbits Are In Your Car

1. Chew Toys: As mentioned previously (in the enemy profile) rabbit teeth continually grow all their lives. The engine compartments of cars can provide tons of wiring and tubing that rabbits can enjoy to keep their teeth at a manageable length in a concealed environment.
2. Food: Most newer cars have soy-based wiring and bio-plastics which can provide a nice snack for the rabbit. See article Does your car have soy based wiring? and Bioplastics In Cars

Excellent! Now let’s take some action!

Top Solutions for How to Keep Rabbits Out Of Your Car

Physical Barrier: This could single handedly be the most effective solution to keep rabbits out of your car. When comparing the size of rabbits to rats, mice and squirrels, they are much larger. Due to their size we can use simple tactics such as putting a portable fence around your car. This is a common tactic that rabbit owners use to guard off area for their domesticated rabbits, and it will work just as well for wild rabbits.

Owl Box: Rabbits are prey to many predators including the barn owl. Putting up an owl box and scoring some owls, will certainly result in some dead rabbits. Not only would these rabbits be killed by the owls, but once the rabbits know a predator lives near your car, they will start to avoid that area altogether. Please remember that there is an unknown gap period between the time the owl box is put up and the owls show up. You need to make sure to have a solution in place that can protect your car until the owls up.

Cats: These agile beasts are rodent killing machines and rabbits shall not be spared. The level of effectiveness is going to depend on the temperament of your cat. Adult rabbits can be pretty difficult to catch. Some cats will regularly catch them and some will let them pass as it is too much effort. I wouldn’t rely solely on this solution but certainly not a bad one to have to your lineup.

Rabbit Repellent: There are many different rabbit repellents out there on the market with all claiming to work great. The truth is that it is really a shot in the dark whether it will work or not. If you are going to use a rabbit repellent, be sure to use in a combination with other solutions.

Ultrasonic Repeller: These sound machines either work or they don’t. It is really hit or miss so be sure to use in a combination with other methods to increase your probability of success.

I hope that this information has been helpful! For any questions/comments, please drop a note below!

Thank you!!

-Rat King Dave

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